Films deal with Van Gogh's life, work

November 23, 2001|By John Petrakis. Special to the Tribune.

As the Art Institute of Chicago continues to pack 'em in for its splendid exhibit "Van Gogh and Gauguin: The Studio of the South," the Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of the Art Institute is filling in some of the historical backstory by presenting a series of films dealing with Van Gogh's life, work and death.

Following are capsule reviews of some Van Gogh films, which will screen at the Film Center, 164 N. State St.; 312-846-2600.

"Lust for Life" (star)(star)(star) (Vincente Minnelli; U.S.). The key to this 1956 bio-pic is the sumptuous cinematography and art direction, which is to be expected from the man who gave us "An American in Paris" and "Gigi." Based on the best-selling novel by Irving Stone, the film was heralded in its day for its "realistic" portrayal of the tortured artist whose raging passion was layered thick on every canvas. But viewed over time, Kirk Douglas' performance seems loud and overblown. It is nearly matched, during his limited screen time, by Anthony Quinn's almost as noisy portrayal of Gauguin. But if you're able to ignore the showiness of the acting, there's much to appreciate in the magnificent wide-screen visuals, including a series of location scenes that are quite stunning. (6 p.m. Friday; 3:30 p.m. Saturday)

"Van Gogh" (star)(star)(star) 1/2 (Maurice Pialat; France). This 1992 film by the sometimes revered, sometimes despised French auteur is a real find, as it chronicles the weeks leading up to Van Gogh's sudden and unexplained (at least in this film) suicide. Jacques Dutronc is terrific as the enigmatic and unpredictable artist, his unyielding gaze suggesting the complicated emotions festering underneath the surface. The film focuses heavily on Van Gogh's relationships with his guilty brother, Theo; a pretty prostitute who loves him; the bumbling Dr. Gachet; and Dr. Gachet's young daughter, Marguerite, who clearly doesn't understand what she's getting into when she gets involved with this tormented Dutchman. One of the film's welcome oddities is the inclusion of numerous drunken party scenes, suggesting the last hurrah before the final adieu. (3 p.m. Sunday; 6:30 p.m. Monday)

"Vincent: The Life and Death of Vincent Van Gogh" (star)(star)(star) 1/2 (Paul Cox; U.S.). This 1987 documentary is a revelation because it suggests, better than the fiction films are able to, that Van Gogh was far more lucid and insightful about his difficult life and work than we have been led to believe. As we listen to a series of letters (read by John Hurt) that he wrote over the years to his brother, Theo, we see images of the exact locations where he painted some of his most famous landscapes, along with the faces of some of the people who moved him to create. His long-term struggle for meaning and validity -- dating back to his days as a failed evangelist -- suggests that this was a man who could and should have been pulled back from the edge before it was too late. (6 p.m. Dec. 8; 5:15 p.m. Dec. 15)